Silverfin has also secured further investment from Hg
Ghent 2nd September 2021: Silverfin, a leading cloud platform for accountants, today announced the acquisition of machine learning and artificial intelligence specialist Boltzmann and its solution for the accountancy sector called Ludwig Assistant. The terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.
The team at Boltzmann will join Silverfin and support the company in its goal to use innovative cloud technology to transform the work of accountancy firms globally. The two companies have worked together as partners for over two years and already share a number of leading accounting customers in Belgium and the UK. Boltzmann’s Ludwig Assistant uses machine learning to enable automated mapping and the review of financial data and was designed specifically for the Silverfin cloud platform.
Tim Vandecasteele, co-founder at Silverfin commented: “We’ve admired the work of the Boltzmann team for some time and collaborated closely with them on the creation of the Ludwig Assistant for Silverfin. We share a common enthusiasm for the transformative impact cloud technology, machine learning and artificial intelligence can have in business and particularly in accounting.”
He continued: “Many of our accounting customers have already experienced first hand the benefits that combining Silverfin with machine learning from Ludwig Assistant has on their productivity. We look forward to building on this foundation of success to bring even more innovation to our cloud platform with the help of the Boltzmann team.”
Ken Bastiaensen, co-founder of Boltzmann added: “We’ve known for some time the transformative impact machine learning and artificial intelligence can have on the accounting profession. We’ve seen for ourselves how harnessing its potential can make firms more productive, and improve speed and accuracy. Ultimately make firms more successful. We’ve helped many of Silverfin’s customers already but this is just the beginning. We’re excited to join the team to combine our expertise with their cloud and accounting experience.”
Silverfin has acquired the Ludwig Assistant for accounting and Boltzmann’s consulting business. Its team works with the accounting profession and other industry sectors to help clients use machine learning to enhance their products and services, and use data more effectively.
Silverfin was founded in 2013 in Ghent, Belgium and now has additional offices in London and Amsterdam. Silverfin has more than 700 customers in 12 countries from leading accounting firms across Europe and North America including all of the ‘Big Four’.
Boltzmann is also from Ghent and was started in 2017. It has a team of experienced data scientists and software engineers with expertise in machine and deep learning, complex modelling and consulting.
Silverfin also announced that it has secured a further investment from Hg, a leading global software and services investor with significant experience in the accounting software sector. Hg initially invested in the business in early 2020 and increased their investment earlier this year. The details and terms of the new transaction have not been disclosed.
About Silverfin
Silverfin is the cloud platform that makes accountants successful. It improves the efficiency, competitiveness and profitability of compliance services, and powers the development and delivery of advisory services.
Silverfin takes financial data directly from client systems and hosts it securely in a single cloud Structured Data Hub. Templates then standardise, and automate, accounting workflows and use the data hub to make compliance easy, fast, and accurate.
But that’s only half the story. Leading firms use Silverfin to power their advisory services too. Looking at data and trends, right across the client portfolio is easy and automatic alerts warn of risks or identify opportunities to give advice, or sell additional services.
About Boltzmann
Boltzmann is a machine learning and artificial intelligence consultancy. Its team of data scientists and engineers specialise in combining machine learning algorithms and big data software to help clients unlock the potential of their data to improve their products and services.
About Ludwig Assistant
Ludwig Assistant is designed for Silverfin and supports the automated mapping of client data to a standardised chart of accounts within accounting firms. This makes setting up client files and then processing client data for compliance reporting faster and more accurate. It can also automate the ongoing review of client data to identify opportunities or issues that need action by the accountancy team.
About Hg
Hg is a leading investor in software and services, focused on backing businesses that change how we all do business. Deep technology expertise, complemented by vertical application specialisation and dedicated operational support, provides a compelling proposition to management teams looking to scale their businesses. Hg has funds under management of over $30 billion, with an investment team of over 140 professionals, plus a portfolio team of more than 35 operators, providing practical support to help businesses to realise their growth ambitions. Based in London, Munich and New York, Hg has a portfolio of over 35 software and technology businesses, worth around $70 billion aggregate enterprise value, with over 50,000 employees globally, growing at over 20% per year. Visit www.hgcapital.com for more information.
For more information please contact:
stuart.handley@silverfin.com
